It’s been awhile since I wrote a blog post – about a year. I’ve been busy: creating art, crafting, reading, and even doing some writing (just not on the blog). I took some online courses to hone my skills. And I discovered Twitch.

If you are even remotely familiar with Twitch.tv – a live-streaming platform by Amazon, you may associate Twitch with gamers. You wouldn’t be wrong. The platform was developed as an outlet for video gamers to stream their gaming live. You may not realize that there is a thriving artists and makers community on Twitch. Painters, illustrators, knitters, crocheters, printmakers, beaders, potters… you get the idea. Both hobbyists and professionals can be found sharing their process and expertise. I watched, I learned, I interacted with makers from around the world.

In January of this year, I started streaming. Twitch is the perfect venue for my to pursue to projects I had started years ago. On Mondays (9am EST) I stream knitting stitch pattern swatches from Barbara Walker’s A Treasury of Knitting Patterns. I’m a process knitter. What I love about knitting is figuring out what makes the pattern special. Why did the designer choose a particular stitch? How does a construction technique change the drape of a garment? Once I “solve” the why of a project I get bored, and this often happens well before a project is finished. So knitting small swatches of different stitch patterns has not only been fun, but also highly educational.

Knitting these swatches was a “project” I started in May of 2019. I knit a few swatches daily until about December of that year. Not sure why I stopped, but I did. And I thought it would be the perfect project to stream on Twitch.

I love sharing what I learn – in real time. So every Monday morning at 9am EST I knit for about 2 hours, explaining what I am doing as I go. Viewers interact in the chat: I answer questions, give tips, talk about the characteristics of fibers and needles. Every now and then I grab a crochet hook and take a stab at some crochet stitches.

On Tuesday mornings I stream cross-stitch. I dug out a long-forgotten project – well, not so much forgotten but more along the lines of ignored. I started the project 30 years ago. It’s a large cross-stitch piece – an alphabet sampler with a medieval castle designed by Teresa Wentzler. When I started those many years ago, I dubbed it the “30-year project” knowing it would take me a while to finish it and not wanting to put any pressure on myself with a real timeline. And life happened. I moved a few times, got married, had kids. By no small miracle, the frame of stitching and the box of carefully wound floss bobbins stayed together all those years. I figured Twitch would be the perfect place to work on it – a weekly dose of accountability. I’ve been making real progress, but still have a long way to go. I enjoy sharing this journey with other crafters. 

I hope you’ll check out Twitch. You’ll find me there every Monday and Tuesday at 9am EST with an occasional random stream thrown in every once in a while. It’s free to create an account (so you can interact with streamers in chat). See you there!

UPDATE: I’m no longer streaming as I’m now busy with other things, but I still recommend you check it out if you want to find some cool crafters who share their knowledge and demonstrate their craft.